Main menu

Tag Archives: strength training

Post navigation

I’m just went through a particularly busy time and, once again, I didn’t find/make time for exercise. I could give you the list of tasks, travel, call nights, etc that led to blowing off my workouts, but it wouldn’t be different from yours.

I know better.

If you haven’t seen it, this is a remarkably persuasive “lecture” (with very cool animation) on why we should make time to exercise.

Here’s what I’m going to do, based on previous experience and a lot of good advice from people who know more than I do:

Schedule exercise as an appointment – every day. I personally think call days and post-call days should be exempt (if you are up most of the night). Sleep trumps exercise if you are really sleep deprived. It’s understandable there will be a day, maybe even two, when something comes up that you can’t control …and you miss your workout. But the end result of having a plan for everyday is that you’ll work out 4-5 days a week (instead of 0-2)

For most of us, it’s not doing the exercise that’s so hard, it’s getting started. I think the “10 minute rule” is key. Put your shoes on and start your workout no matter how bad you feel or how much you don’t want to do it. If, after 10 minutes, you still feel that way – stop.

Watching yourself improve is a great incentive to keep going. Set up goals for slow and steady improvement and then log what happens. We’re all good at science – think about approaching this as one big “experiment”. When things don’t work out the way you expect, log it. Buy a notebook or find an app you like. Use your log to figure out what works and what doesn’t.

I’m in. For the next month I’m going to set and meet a goal for 150 minutes/ week of real exercise. Join me?

For several weeks my schedule has gotten the best of me and all efforts at working out have fallen by the wayside. So, I decided to think about fitness, motivation and the “MED” (minimum exercise dose) to maintain fitness. Here’s what I came up with:

1. Consistency, not quantity is essential.

10-20 minutes “every” day (i.e. 5 or 6 days a week) is really better than 60 minutes once a week. Use The Daily Fitness Solution for 20 minute workouts. Google “ten minute workouts” and you’ll find a huge number of workouts to do (or buy).

There are a lot of people around all of us who somehow figure out how to stay fit with the same busy schedule that we have. Somehow they make it a high enough priority to “just do it”. It’s doable, so our excuses are just that… excuses. (Darn)

I went in search of an exercise equivalent for “fast easy recipes” and came up with a good find. The Daily Fitness Solution provides 20 minute workouts that don’t require a gym or equipment. It’s written by Reinhard Engels, who works in bioinformatics visualization at MIT. So, as you might expect, his program is logical, simple and without hype.

The workout program is more than reasonable, with rest days built in (which could be swapped with a workout day if you are on call) No matter how busy you are, you can probably find 20 minutes!

The No S Diet, also known as the “Grandma Diet,” the “Why Didn’t I Think of that Diet,” and the “No $ Diet” is a program of systematic moderation I invented for myself that I imagine might work for similarly minded people.

No funny science or calorie accounting involved, just a few simple and mnemonic tricks for giving your willpower the upper hand.

There are just three rules and one exception:

No Snacks

No Sweets

No Seconds

Except (sometimes) on days that start with “S”

That’s it.

How could something this simple possibly work? Precisely because it’s simple — or rather, following the Einsteinian dictum, “as simple as possible, but not simpler.”

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to come up with monthly “resolutions” for myself and for anyone who follows this blog. Cooking Light magazine (which is one of my favorite sources of recipes and ideas for healthy living) had the same idea, so I am shamelessly borrowing their healthy habits!

It’s a lot easier to commit to 30 days of a new habit than a full year. So this month’s goal is to get stronger. How to get stronger is something that is taught in medical school. Whether it’s strengthening cardiac muscle to improve cardiac function or building striated muscle to improve strength it’s the same concept – Getting stronger requires a progressive and repetitive load on the muscle that forces it to adapt.

Why it’s important to lift weights

Weight control. If you are interested in losing weight or controlling your weight, you probably have been told to do more cardio. Although cardio is important, adding weight training will greatly improve your odds of losing or maintaining weight. The math is simple. Fat doesn’t burn very many calories but muscle does. If you build muscle, you increase your lean mass and, therefore, you burn more calories just sitting around (and a lot more if you are working). In addition, strength training has an “after burn” that helps; your basal metabolic rate stays elevated for about 1-2 hours after the workout (for an additional ~100 calories worth of calories burned)

Injury prevention. There are good data that show joints are protected when you build muscle mass. Most occupational injuries for doctors are related to the joint injury – usually spine, hips or knees. Strengthening your muscles will increase your stamina and decrease your risk of injury.

Warm up first! Get on the bike, walk fast, just do something to increase your heart rate and warm up your muscles. 5-10 minutes is usually enough…. but don’t skip this important step!

Target specific muscle groups. The goal is to get strong in a balanced way. Don’t neglect one muscle group in favor of another. In general, strength workouts are divided into back, chest, shoulders, legs (quads and hamstrings) and abs, but you can get even more specific if you want. Here is a great list of exercises for each muscle group (and a good anatomy review!): Exercise Directory from ExRx.net

Pick the right weight. It doesn’t matter if you use machines or free weights. What is important is to pick weights that are heavy enough. The goal is to be able to move the weight 10-12 times – but struggle with the last rep or two. If it’s not hard to finish the set, increase the weight. You’ll also have to increase the weights as you get stronger.

Maintain your form. If you lift weights that are too heavy, you will “lose form”. This is classically the guy (sorry, it’s usually a guy) who is trying to bench press too much and ends up arching his back to be able to lift the weight. The problem is that “losing form” means using accessory muscles to lift the weight instead of just the ones you are trying to train. This is how injuries happen. Don’t do it!

Do sets of repetitions (reps). Lift the weight 10-12 times (one “set”), rest, then repeat the set. Three sets of 10-12 reps should be your goal. There is a good physiologic reason that this works , especially for beginners. Once your muscles get used to it, though, you may want to change to different patterns.

Lift weights every week. Getting every major muscle group once a week is important. Twice a week is better. More than twice a week can lead to injury, unless you are getting enough rest days between workouts. The ideal goal is to work out every muscle group twice a week. If you want to split your workouts to do more days (but less time per day) that’s fine.

Rest between workouts. Don’t work out the same muscle group two days in a row.

How to get started

If you’ve never lifted weights before, or have limited experience it can be intimidating. This is particularly true for women, who often feel that it’s just easier to hit the cardio machines than deal with the “foreign language” of the weight room. But – it’s really important to do this, and – I promise – it’s not rocket science. Here’s how to start:

Buy a book or go on line. Learn one or two exercises at a time from these sources then go to the gym. Start with light weights on purpose so you can concentrate on correct form. As you learn, add more variety.

Pay for a trainer. If you can afford a weekly trainer, that’s fantastic – you just hired a combination of teacher and motivation! For most students and residents, it’s more realistic to pay for just one or two sessions to set up a training program and teach you good form. Most gyms have trainers, which is probably the easiest way to go, but you can find independent trainers in your area who will meet you at a gym or your house to do the same thing. You can also ask a friend or colleague who is a seasoned veteran to help you.

Resistance bands. Resistance bands are probably best used to supplement weight training with machines or free weights, but they can be used as your primary training tool. These are great for when you are on call (assuming you have 15 minutes at some point for a quick workout) or when you are travelling. They come in a variety of shapes and sizes. When you buy a set, the exercise program is usually included or you can find examples on line.

This week approximately 16,000 US medical students are going to receive their diplomas and become physicians. There are also about 16,000 college graduates who will start medical school later this summer or early in the fall. Congratulations to you all!

Nearly all of you have a well-deserved month (or two) to rest and get ready for the next step in your training. So, I thought it might be helpful to pass on a few words of advice on how to spend your time this summer.

Do NOT study!

If you are starting your residency and you think it might help relieve your (normal) anxiety, here is what to do: Buy one of the major textbooks and use it to get excited about what you are going to learn. If you want to, plan how you are going to study for the year. Skim the book if you really have to do something to feel less anxious, but don’t spend hours studying.

If you are getting ready to start medical school – step away from the books! Seriously, there is nothing you can do that will make it any easier, so just enjoy your time off!

Take a vacation (or two or three…)

Visit family and friends – take a road trip and connect with people you haven’t seen in a while

Hang out on a beach, go for some great hikes, read some great novels

Sleep late, eat well, and just rest

Develop (or strengthen) an exercise habit

Use this summer to develop a daily exercise routine that you can take into your new (and crazy) schedule. Overall, your goal for the summer should be to develop a balanced exercise program (cardio, strength training and flexibility). If you’ve never done any strength training, hire a trainer and learn about it. Your goal should be at least 30 minutes of cardio 4-5 times/week, 2-3 strength training sessions/week and stretching every day. If you develop a balanced exercise routine this summer, it will be much, much easier to continue this once you start medical school or your internship. Commit to doing at least 30 minutes of exercise a day this summer.

Running is one of the best (and most convenient) cardio exercises for medical students and residents (because it’s cheap, efficient and effective) Use this summer to become a runner. If you hate running, find another good cardio exercise habit to develop instead – but pick one!

Learn some basic skills to cook simple things. If you have good cooks in your family, have them teach you.

If you don’t have family members who can teach you, find cooking classes near you and sign up. Many high end grocery stores and gourmet stores offer classes for beginners – look on line for classes near you.

One of my New Year’s resolutions was to come up with monthly “resolutions” for myself and for anyone who follows this blog. Cooking Light magazine (which is one of my favorite sources of recipes and ideas for healthy living) had the same idea, so I am shamelessly borrowing their healthy habits!

It’s a lot easier to commit to 30 days of a new habit than a full year. So this month’s goal is to maintain or improve fitness by increasing activity.

It may seem daunting to stay in shape or even improve your fitness level when you are swamped with studying or work in the hospital. It’s not easy, but it is absolutely doable. The best way to start is to pick one or two of the following ideas and make them a resolution for this month. Pick goals that are “SMART” (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely) and then just do it! Consistency is the most important part of setting this goal – so pick something that you know you can do on a regular basis.

Some ideas to consider:

Take the stairs at work instead of the elevator

Commute to school or the hospital on your feet or on a bicycle

Park as far away from school or work as is reasonable and walk the rest of the way

In the busy life of students, residents, and practicing docs it’s easy to lose track of your own fitness. There’s no question that consistency, not quantity is the key to success in staying fit while you are busy. Which means you have to give up the notion of working out for any specific time period and realize that even 10 minutes a day matters.

Which is where I got the idea for push-ups. (Well, to be honest, I started thinking about push-ups when I heard about one of our residents who recently ended up in a tie-break challenge in a trivia contest. The tie-break was to see how many push-ups you could do. She beat two big guys…. in high heels and a strapless dress!)

For the fledgling anatomists (since a lot of first year students are studying upper body anatomy right now): The primary muscles you use in doing a push-up are the pectoralis major and minor muscles. The key secondary muscles are the triceps and anterior deltoids. But – because a push-up is basically a plank with motion, you also use muscles in your abdomen, back, and legs, too. This is why it’s such a fabulous exercise to maintain (and even build) fitness if you don’t have much time.

The form you use in doing a push-up is important. Cheating not only diminishes the return on your exercise investment, it can actually hurt your back. Here’s two websites that explain the details on proper form for a push-up:

Most women, and some men, won’t have enough strength to start with “regular” push-ups. The form is really important – if you can’t maintain your back straight during the push up, or get your body down all the way to the floor, you’ll need to start with a modified push-up. Don’t worry, it won’t take long and you’ll be able to do the “regular” push-up. Don’t risk hurting your back (even if you are feeding your ego) – start where it’s appropriate! If you haven’t done push-ups before, you’ll probably need to start with knee push-ups and then move on to “hand elevated” push-ups. Push-ups are easier to do if your hands are higher than your feet, like against a wall or hands on a table or chair. An easy way to use hand elevated push-ups to train for “regular” push-ups is to use steps (like the stairs at work when you are on call or at school if you are in the basic sciences). Start with your hands on the 4th or 5th step in front of you and do your set of push-ups. As you get stronger, move one step down. Eventually, you’ll move down through all the steps until your hands are on the floor.

Training to do pushups isn’t hard, and, with a little planning and coaching, you’ll be able to do many more than you think. Here’s the url for a great website that explains how anyone can get to the point that they can do 100 pushups: http://hundredpushups.com/

Just for fun… the world record for consecutive pushups is 10,507, set in 1980 by Minoru Yoshida.